BTG Green, the brand behind leading Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme advice site www.ESOSHelp.com, has been featured by the Mail On Sunday.

In an article written by the Sunday newspaper and republished on its dedicated financial website This Is Money, the issue of thousands of companies facing £50,000 fines for not complying with new EU energy-saving initiatives was brought to the public’s attention.

ESOS, a European scheme rolled out by the government last year, requires that 16,000 UK firms are audited for their energy efficiency and these firms must organise their audits and adhere to any compliance issues before 5 December, 2015.

In the article itself, BTG Green partner Julie Palmer discusses how awareness of the scheme is low and many of these organisations are in danger of unwittingly racking up colossal fines.

“This new EU-backed scheme is not to be trifled with as the Environment Agency plans to crack down hard on any companies that try to slip through the net,” says Palmer.

“Feigning ignorance won’t save anyone from significant fines.”

BTG Green – part of renowned professional services firm Begbies Traynor – produced a survey to ascertain the current state of awareness among directors, owners and facilities managers of large organisations and the results demonstrated that recognition of the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme is ‘worryingly low’.

In fact, many of the 16,000 companies due to be affected are unaware that the scheme even exists.

ESOS was announced in June 2014 and according to government guidelines, it applies to organisations with more than 250 employees, or an annual turnover in excess of €50million (£39million), and assets of more than €43million.

Those that meet the qualification criteria must appoint an independent assessor to identify possible energy savings in advance of the December deadline.